Actor, activist Danny Glover to speak at Rowan University event

Actor Danny Glover, center, greets union members at a rally in Hamtramck, Mich., Monday, May 11, 2009. Glover joined labor, political and civil rights leaders on the first stop of a four-day, 11-state tour supporting U.S. manufacturing workers. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

GLASSBORO — It was recently announced that activist and actor Danny Glover will be the keynote speaker at Rowan University’s 27th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Breakfast on Jan. 21.

The university hosts the event annually to honor Dr. King’s achievements and benefit the William H. Myers Scholarship Endowment Fund, which provides financial support for high-achieving minority students.

And like each year, the event is a guaranteed sell-out, according to Rowan spokesman Joe Cardona, and this time around will likely be no different with Glover’s added Hollywood flair added to the mix.

“We’re very happy to be able to get him,” Cardona said. “For about 15 years, we’ve made a great effort to get people who knew Dr. King or who are active during the Civil Rights movement or has a strong record for civil rights issues.”

Glover’s notable track record as an actor, producer and director includes his roles in the “Lethal Weapon” movies, “Places in the Heart,” “Angels in the Outfield,” “Silverado,” “The Color Purple,” “The Royal Tenenbaums,” “Mandela” and “Witness.”

His on-screen and stage abilities have earned him an ACE Award and several NAACP Image Awards.

More recently, Glover and actor Felix Justice have presented “An Evening with Martin & Langston,” a program of dramatic readings from the works of Langston Hughes and Dr. King.

But when the cameras aren’t around, Glover has proven himself committed to many organizations and community activism, and that’s what made him a choice speaker for the university’s breakfast this year, according to Cardona.

His efforts have been geared toward literacy, education and the arts and he has also created strong ties with the Vanguard Public Foundation based in San Francisco, Glover’s hometown.

In 2001, Glover became chair of the board of TransAfrica Forum, the African-American lobbying organization on Africa and the Caribbean, and he actively serves on the board of The Algebra Project, a math empowerment program.

Glover has served as Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Program since 1998. The program focuses mainly on issues of poverty, disease and economic underdevelopment in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean.

His dedication to public service earned Glover the 2003 NAACP Chairman's Award.

Glover can be seen at the event on Jan. 21 at 9:30 a.m. in the Enyon Ballroom, located in the Chamberlain Student Center on the Glassboro campus.

Tickets for the event are $75 per person, $600 for a table of eight, and must be purchased in advance.

To reserve tickets, contact Kathy at 856-256-5400 by Jan. 11. All checks should be made payable to the Rowan University Foundation.